The disclosure concerns a method as well as a device for printing of information by means of an electrographic printing device. Such printing devices are known in a plurality of configurations, for example as electrophotographic printing devices, as ionographic printing devices or as magnetographic printing. Various physical effects are respectively used in order to initially generate a virtual image on an intermediate image carrier, to ink this virtual image with suitable dye (in particular toner), and to transfer-print the image so generated onto a recording medium.
Such digital printing methods for variable data are, for example, specified in the publication “Das Druckerbuch, Technik und Technologien der Océ-Drucksystem, Drucktechnologien, Océ Printing Systems GmbH”, 6th edition (May 2001), ISBN 3-000-00 1019-X in chapter 9, third section (pages 9-21 through 9-36).
For printing of sheet-form recording medium, it is known from U.S. Pat. No. 6,044,244 A to respectively pass the recording medium on a transport band to the intermediate image carrier. The transport band thereby causes the sheet-form recording medium to remain on its desired transport web because it adheres to the transport band and does not remain electrostatically adhered to the intermediate image carrier. Thus a paper jam can be prevented.
It has emerged that, in transfer printing arrangements that comprise such a transport band for a sheet-form recording medium, toner particles are transferred from the intermediate image carrier onto the transport band. The cause for such an unwanted toner transfer onto the transport band can, for example, be a print image projection in which the transferred image is larger than the format of the recording medium. Toner markings in the edge region of the intermediate image carrier or in the intervening spaces that result in the spaces between successive recording media (what are known as gaps) can also lead to such unwanted toner transfers onto the transport band. A regulation method for developer stations that operate on the basis of toner markings is known from the publication WO 99/36834 A1.
Further causes for an unwanted transfer of toner onto a transport band are undefined charged toner particles (background) that are located on the inked image of the intermediate image carrier as well as toner image regions that are not transfer-printed dependent on the transfer printing efficiency ΠTransfer.
An electrographic printing device with a plurality of transfer printing stations and a transport band for transportation of the recording medium is known from JP 2002-169385 A. Electrographic printing devices with a reservoir for residual toner are known from JP 2000-181312 A and from JP 11265090 A.
A method for operation of a transfer printing station of an electrographic printing device is known from EP 0 339 673 A2, in which the transfer printing potential in the region of the transfer printing station is dissipated as long as no paper traverses the station.
Further methods and transfer printing stations are disclosed in JP 2001-324841, JP 2002-156,843 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,081